


welcome home

by wildflower (bangtrashsyd)



Category: NU'EST, Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-04
Packaged: 2018-12-16 11:34:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11827899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bangtrashsyd/pseuds/wildflower
Summary: a story in eleven parts, of how Minhyun returns homewritten for #2000DaysWith_NUEST & #뉴이스트_데뷔_이천일





	welcome home

**Author's Note:**

> super self-indulgent lol
> 
> if you have the time, listen to adele's hello before you read this & pay attention to the lyrics

**W**

Wanna One's debut is spectacular. Jonghyun watches proudly as Minhyun dances on stage, catching all the cameras with his experienced eye. His throat tightens during 'Always, and beside him Minki begins to dab at his eyes with his fingers. Dongho hums along under his breath, his smile a little fractured. He's holding up well, Jonghyun thinks. Their strong white tiger, although it had taken a long, long time to put him back together to attend the showcase. 

Backstage, Aron finds Minhyun first, pulling him into a long hug and laughing wildly. 

"You looked pretty today." Aron tells him, and Minhyun grins brightly, flushed with stage adernaline. 

"You came!" He yells above the din, and Jonghyun lets them have their own time, going to find Seongwoo. When everyone has had their time of Minhyun, he goes to find him. 

"You did well." He says warmly, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "I'm so proud of you."

Minhyun talks to him for a while longer, then pulls him into a hug, cradling his head in his arms because he's taller. Jonghyun shuts up and lets Minhyun lose himself. He's always been tactile, after all.

**E**

Even after Produce 101 and the sudden increase in the number of their fans, days at the company are still spent in limbo. They meet with the management, and manage to wrangle out the promises of a full album and weeks of promotion after three long and tiring hours. Aron manages to convince them that going on variety shows is the best way to ensure the public sees them often, and everyone knows the last thing NU'EST needs is being forgotten. Again.

They're sent away with a lazy okay sign, and somehow they're over the moon with it, faces full of hope. Jonghyun later spends his time in the studio, pressing his head to the cool wall and praying under his breath that he doesn't fail them again. Minki opens the door thirty minutes later and finds him in the same spot.

"Jonghyun." He calls, and he cannot look at him in the eye, afraid of what the other will see. "Jonghyun, we're here for you now. We won't leave you to fend by yourself ever again."

When Minki hugs him, Jonghyun breaks down in his arms and tries very valiantly to remain strong. But Minki's always been their most unapologetic member, strong in his identity.

He lets him cry for hours.

**L**

Luggage piles up in the doorway, and Minki had nearly emptied out his entire room looking for perfect outfits for his trip. A week later and they're in the same scenario all over again, with him trying to pack away everything and failing.

"Lucky." Dongho says, tilting his head to watch. "I want to go overseas too."

"Oh my God." Minki dumps out another bag of worn clothing, tipping the entire stack into the laundry basket. "I'm so bad at packing. Where's Minhyun when you need him-"

"I'm home!" Aron yells from the doorway, and Jonghyun smells the food before he sees him. Dongho jumps to his feet, muttering a "Finally." under his breath and going to lay out newspaper on the table. Their eldest unloads boxes of jajangmyeon and japchae, coupled with more layers of kimchi pancake, meat dumplings and sundae. 

"Wow." Jonghyun comments, and Aron grins at him, unloading tteokbokki too. "That's a lot."

"I'm treating." He announces happily, and Jonghyun ducks forward to pull off a slice of pancake. He chews thoughtfully, and makes appreciative noises at the right time. 

"It's good." He acknowledges, and from inside the room Minki yells at himself and storms out, lighting up at the sight of the feast.

"Thanks, hyung." He says, side-hugging Aron before he sits down in his chair and breaks open a pair of chopsticks. Dongho brings the tray of drinks out, pouring cups of Cola for all of them to share. Aron turns on his computer, and the four of them cluster around it.

"Time to get to work now you're home, Minki." He tells him, and Minki groans in protests. "You have food, stop complaining."

"Dongho and Jonghyun have already begun writing songs." Aron points to them. "I've already started with the concept books and writing rap lyrics."

"Okay, okay." Minki puts his hands up in surrender. "I'll get my stuff done."

"You better." Dongho mumbles around a mouth of japchae, and Jonghyun laughs, wiping his mouth clean of the sauce.

**C**

Clicking through the hundreds of songs they've set aside for better ones, Jonghyun comes across a file labelled: "080616". He presses play, not expecting anything, but the file is a mp3 file. The backing track is upbeat, catchy enough, and the beat stutters wildly before evening out into smooth bass. He likes it, and he clicks on the file properties, eager to see who made it.

_Hwang Minhyun._

Jonghyun chokes out a laugh, then saves the file in his hard disk. Later, the four of them will write lyrics and rap verses, inserting a smooth synth sound that's common with the netizens. They will also change the creator of the file, building layers of vocal harmonizations and blending Minki's high tone with Dongho's technique to cover for their missing member. 

They send it to Minhyun a week later, and they recieve a letter back two days after.

He grants them permission to use his song as their comeback song.

**O**

Objectively, they should have expected the response. 

Nu'est releases their full album "WELCOME" to top charts and rankings. Jonghyun's hands shake as Aron turns the camera on the film their reaction, and Minki does not fail to disappoint. Their youngest member starts crying, and Dongho too. Aron wraps them all in a hug, pressing his lips to Minki's forehead as comfort. It still feels like a dream, every moment of it.

It feels a little too good to be true.

Music shows clammer for their schedules, and the new manager Pledis assigns to them seems nice enough, giving them breaks and enough food to sustain them through the tough choreography. They finish their first stage for the double title tracks "Wish" and "Begin", then move on to filming Weekly Idol. After Weekly Idol, which runs to three in the morning, they stumble home spent, but with smiles on their faces.

The next morning, they wake up at seven and repeat.

**M**

Management sends them to Japan for a concert as a New Year's gift. Their first Korean concert had been a major success, although Aron had fainted during rehearsals. It was hard to cope, with the tough choreography and tight setlist. Jonghyun runs into the bathroom to throw up his lunch because of how stressed he is, and Dongho throws a tantrum because his voice cracks during full dress rehearsal. 

Minki grounds them all firmly, threatening Dongho with the horrible promise to steal his music supplies once they get home to make him laugh and feel better. He holds Jonghyun around the waist, keeping him together. Jonghyun's not sure what he does to Aron, but Aron regains his momentum. He's always been the most driven, the proudest, the most ambitious. 

Getting to the airport is a hassle. Dongho gets shoved and pushed. (They all do.) Jonghyun yells for Minki, worried when he disappears from his sight. They make it onto the plane in one piece, although Aron looks strangely ruffled. Whatever sleep they manage to get during the flight is shortlived, and they are forced to exit the aircraft when they touch down four hours later in Kyoto.

Japan is worse, and someone yanks on Minki's hair. Jonghyun snarls, slapping off the person's hand and hugging Minki close to him as they push their way to the exit. Dongho grabs Aron's hand, passing the duffel bag he's carrying to the security. Luckily Minki has the good sense to carry nothing at all, and he's shaking as Jonghyun hauls him through the crowd. In the car, they do an inventory check, and Dongho sighs when he sees his earpiece has fallen apart in the struggle.

"Is everyone okay?" Jonghyun checks over their bodies to make sure they're not physically hurt, but Minki straightens his back.

"That was unacceptable." He decides, and no one contradicts him. His eyes glitter with something like tears, and Aron smooths his back. "I felt like an  _animal."_

"We'll get better security on the way back." Their manager assures.

They don't.

Jonghyun gets hit in the face with the lenses of a big camera, and he drops on one knee in shock. Minki and Dongho grab him, bringing him to his feet, and he covers his face with his hands.

**E**

Endless promotions and activities tire them out, but Jonghyun continues pushing, continues striving to be better. He knows he's lacking in many things, and sometimes he wishes for Minhyun's kind hand on his shoulder, comforting him.

He spends a Saturday with his family in Gangwon-do, with his sisters cooing over how much he's grown and how smiley he is now. His mother looks at him like she's never been prouder, and it shatters his heart a little, knowing the struggles she's been through.

Sunday is spent with his friends, and he manages to make an appointment with Minhyun. When they meet, it's easy and familiar, even though his best friend has lost so much weight. He touches the cheeks that were once filled with baby fat and ghosts a hand over his biceps. Minhyun's bulked up, he realises, when he raises his shirt to brag. 

As the night passes, Minhyun starts talking about how hard it was at the start. Lips loosened with alcohol, he even cries a little.

"I cried when we re-recorded NEVER." He confesses tearfully. "I just kept thinking of you, and it broke me to pieces."

"Cry baby." Jonghyun teases lightly. "Don't be stupid. We're still here for you."

"It's not the same." He laments, and Jonghyun holds his hand, brushing his palm with the pad of his thumb. "It doesn't feel right."

"Ah, Minhyun." He sighs back, leaning his head on his shoulder. "One more year of peace before you come back to our mess. Treasure it."

Minhyun giggles wryly, and they talk into the night and early morning. When they part, it's with a "See you later." and not a good bye.

**H**

Having their promotions overlap is a blessed time for both groups. 

Wanna One unabashedly invades their larger waiting room during the music shows, especially after Aron clicks instantly with Daehwi and Guanlin. 

"We come as a package deal!" Jihoon chirps from where he's talking to Minki, and Aron rolls his eyes.

"No respect nowadays." He rants, rolling his eyes in despair. 

"I'm so sorry, sunbae-nim!" Minhyun begs sweetly, and the entire room bursts into laughter at Aron's appalled reaction. JBJ are promoting too, and Hyunbin shuttles between the three waiting rooms like a butterfly. The first time "Sorry Sorry Team 2" take a selfie together, the entire internet goes wild with pining, and Daniel winks.

"We have to work together again!" He says enthusiastically, pleased when no one contradicts him. 

Minhyun's gaining his weight and confidence back, and Jonghyun's proud of him. They meet in the bathrooms to talk, sitting together and just being open to one another.

"Hey." Jisung's says apologetically when it's their turn for rehearsals. "Minhyun, we have to go."

"Right." Minhyun mutters, getting to his feet. He leaves without turning back, and Jonghyun can't help but feel a pang of longing in his heart.

**O**

Only Aron gets it.

He's been through it once, after all. Produce 101 seems like an eternity ago, but Jonghyun knows that sometimes when they leave the house, their eldest gets antsy. He gets scared that they won't come back.

Jonghyun tells him about Minhyun, about how scared he is that he's slipping away. Aron listens quietly.

"You know." He says, sitting the both of them down at the kitchen table. "Minhyun's probably feeling that way too."

Jonghyun nods, sighing.

"Want me to talk to him?" 

"Nevermind." Jonghyun dismisses it. "I'll do it myself."

He takes out his phone to inspect Minhyun's schedule and he finds a date where It's relatively free. Wanna One's promotions have ended, so they  _should_ have some free time.

He winds up at the Wanna One dorms the next week, pressing the doorbell with his heart in his throat. Guanlin opens the door, staring at him with puzzlement.

"Hyung?' He asks.

"I need to see Minhyun." He says, words falling over themselves in his urgency. "Please."

"Okay." Guanlin touches his shoulder once, then instructs him to wait. He paces the length of the corridor, waiting for the turn of the door knob again.

"Jong!" Minhyun grins at him from the door, and Jonghyun walks forward quickly. "What's-"

He hauls him into the stairwell, shutting the door behind them. Minhyun lets himself be dragged away, brows knitted together in worry. Jonghyun hugs him once they're alone and unmatched.

"I missed you." He confesses. Minhyun tenses up, and he pulls away.

"Me too." He says softly, and somehow-

Somehow everything is okay.

They come back with a mini album the next fortnight, and Minhyun steals his manager's phone to congratulate them. 

**M**

Minhyun calls back every Sunday.

It's three months till the end of his contract ends, and he's been bombarded with advertisement and acting opportunities. He comebacks in one week for the last time as Wanna One, and promotions drag out for nearly a month.

"I'm so tired." He complains, and Dongho laughs at him.

"Suck it up, Minhyun-ah." He hollers relentlessly, and they start to argue again. Minki walks in, listens to Minhyun's voice for a good ten minutes, then begins to fight on Dongho's side of the war. Aron has his head in Jonghyun's lap, the both of them grinning as they hear the three of them fight.

Three months. Twelve weeks. Ninety days. Two thousand, one hundred and sixty hours. Fifty one thousand, eight hundred and forty minutes. 

He can do this.

**E**

Even with their success, Jonghyun is still surprised with the release of their mini album 'HOME' on New Year's Day. They top the charts, break records, and generally succeed at digital and physical sales. He bites his tongue, watching everyone light up. Minki took most control in this album, and he doesn't cry this time.

"Cheesy." Minhyun comments from where he's passed on their couch. "Really?"

Jonghyun writes the initials WH on a piece of paper, jumping when Minhyun tickles his side.

"What's WH upside down?" He asks. 

"MH." Minhyun mutters absently. "Oh."

"We didn't forget. You can stop being so worried now." Jonghyun says, and Minhyun grins as bright as the stars.

"Cheesy." He repeats, and Jonghyun crouches over him, caging him into the couch.

He presses a kiss to his best friend's forehead, smiling tenderly.

"Welcome home, Minhyun-ah."

**Author's Note:**

> leave me a comment ♡ i love you guys


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